Why Did You Wait Until A Global Pandemic?

The last 2 months have been a flurry of Zoom meetings, digital hangouts, and webinars as we started leveraging every digital platform possible to keep business in the realm of normalcy.  It’s safe to say that the way we do business has been changed forever thanks to COVID-19.

The digital revolution has been a long time coming. With the rise of AI and automation over the last few years, experts have been urging business owners to investigate and adopt digital solutions in anticipation of how smart technology streamline business practices as we move towards the future.

Those who had not heeded these calls prior to the pandemic crisis have been caught on the back foot, resulting in scenes not unlike the pre-lockdown panic buying; albeit now in the digital realm, as many scrambled to create or enhance their tech and online presence.

The evolution of “work smarter”

As the economy slowly reopens, the risk of exposure to COVID-19 remains a concern; especially to those who work for businesses which have not yet adopted digital platforms which eliminate the need for hard-copy paper trails and needless face-to-face interaction.

In a recent Harvard Business Review article, the subject of “healthy buildings” was highlighted. The article feature tiered measures companies could employ to minimise exposure for their workforce.

As can be clearly seen from the diagram, while employing measures such as PPE and social distancing can aid in the reduction of risk, the most effective tactic is to eliminate exposure altogether. According to HBR, while a work-from-home policy is the best possible strategy, they speculate that this approach has the highest business impact.

While this may be true in some cases, when it comes to the property management sector, a decent remote management system improves communication and automates processes which streamlines the ability to work remotely. Core Vision’s suite of cloud-based facilities management tools are based on the 3 pillars of staff safety, process efficiency and optimising of resources.

Pillar 1 – Staff Safety

First and foremost, companies need to protect their workforce. By digitising paper-based tasks, up to 80% of business processes can be done remotely. This “social distancing on steroids” not only eliminates physical contact between staff members but reduces contact with outside suppliers and even property tenants and residents.

Pillar 2 – Efficiency

Ensuring that all documents are stored securely in the cloud leads to increased efficiency and accountability as tasks are assigned to specific individuals who are responsible for their resolution. Eliminating the “pass-the-buck” mentality will greatly improve both service delivery to tenants as well as critical business functions, leading to faster resolution of issues.

Pillar 3 – Optimisation

COVID-19 has had a dramatic impact on the economy, making every cent on a company’s balance sheet count more than ever. Replacing inefficient, unauditable, manual processes with a cloud-based solution optimised specifically for the property management sector will have a positive effect on your bottom line. Not only are digital management solutions themselves cost effective but have been proven to save both time and money by eliminating unnecessary direct and indirect expenditure of these two precious resources.

It took a pandemic…

It shouldn’t have to take a global pandemic for businesses to find more cost effective, productive ways of doing things, but that’s currently where we find ourselves. Constant evolution and refining are required to keep processes current and in-line with the market demands of the 21st century. Fortunately, it’s not yet too late to switch to a digital solution.

HBR article & image source:  https://hbr.org/2020/04/what-makes-an-office-building-healthy